Happens in other industries, too. I’ve worked a few 140-hour weeks for a magazine production company trying to get a product out the door. Let me tell you, it was SO not worth it for $15,600 a year. 
It’s not always 17 hours a day. I worked from 9am on Tuesday until midnight on Wednesday. Not going home, or just nipping back for a shower really brings up your average.
Anyway I’m not really complaining about the hours. I love what I do, and I thrive on the challenge. It’s just that when some tool brings you 8 hours work at midnight and implies you should have been smarter, it pisses me off. The smart thing to do would have been to stab him with a letter opener, open a bottle of liquid paper and go all niceday on his ass.
Contrary to what msmith537 said, there has actually been a big power shift towards the analysts recently. 20% have resigned in the last 2 months, and it resulted in a 25% pay rise for yours truly. I’m not sure many other people can say that. Despite all the hours, at age 23, I still don’t know anyone my age outside the industry who makes a better hourly rate.
Are you located in London? I was under the impression that the banking (and finance and consulting and so on) industry was not doing so well here in NYC.
Personally, I’m sick of having to board a flight at a moments notice, work round the clock to meet some arbitrary deadline on a project that’s 2 years behind schedule anyway, live in a Sheraton Hotel for months at a time in West Bumblefuck or have some idiot call me at midnight at my house to redue some “deliverables” because they just forwarded me the documents I was supposed to get three days ago.
Fuck that shit. From now on its a nice leisurely 50 hour week.
Yes, I’m based in London. The industry has been really bad here also, although just recently is picking up. However, my company cut so deeply at the junior levels (too many chiefs and not enough indians) that we have all been under the kosh. Hence a lot of people just walked without another job lined up. This produced a viscous circle of increasing work, decreasing workers.
Sounds pretty sweet to me.
This is why I basically quit working. Why work 100 hours a week for 3X dollars when I can work 25 hours a week for X dollars?
Having read this statement of your ambition and ignorance, I have no sympathy at all for your original complaint.
Your “problem” is entirely a result of your own desires. Grow up.
There’s nothing wrong with wanting to work in a challenging profession (especially one that pays well). A lot of young people just fail to realize just how much is actually required of them.
From personal experience, the idea of working for a prestigeous bank (or consulting firm in my case) sounds good on paper - interesting work, high salary, prestige. problem is that once the initial excitement works off, a lot of people get tired of work till midnight, go home (if your lucky), be at work at 8am(or earlier), come in this weekend, cancel that trip, get on that plane, etc.
It takes a special kinf of person to devote their entire life to a job:
“Work smarter, not harder” is kinda cool. Did you ever wonder if the phrasing will spill over into other areas?
Fight Club: Come on, hit me smarter.
The average low-budget porn flick: Oh yeah, baby, fuck me, fuck me smarter.
Opening consumer electronics: Damn, this headphones package is as smart as a rock, I just can’t cut it.
UnuMondo
This is one of the most important things my old man taught me. I have found that if you need to have the concept explained to you, chances are you aren’t going to understand anyway. If you are required to work the hours you claim, you must not get it. You are either doing something wrong, or actually enjoy putting in those kinds of hours.
But who am I to pee in your Wheaties? I shouldn’t say shit with my vastly over-inflated salary for my 32 hour week! And because my old man worked smart, not hard, I hardly need to work at all! 
Life is good!
So many train wrecks, so few train junk-yards.
Probably both.
My most loathed corporate term is Lean Forward.
Perhaps I should be refreshed by their honesty though - at least they aren’t trying to conceal the fact that they intent to screw me (once again).